Charmed Again: Magic School
by SomethingxWicca
Summary: The millennia-old magical barriers surrounding Magic School are beginning to crumble. Strange occurrences start to arise and the school even risks exposure to the mortal world. The fate of Magic School and all of its students may be left in the hands of the nine young but determined children of the Charmed Ones. Set in the year 2024.
1. Introduction and Background

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the _Charmed_ characters or anything associated with them. The only original content is the new characters I have created and the plot of the following story. All credit goes to the creators of _Charmed_.**

All of the nine kids follow their descriptions, ages, and powers given in the _Charmed_ TV show and comic series. I have taken the liberty to give the undeveloped characters personalities I saw fit, as well as powers and power updates that I think are appropriate (i.e. more controlled powers for the Mitchell twins, psychic powers for Phoebe's daughters, etc.) As for appearances, I will do my best to fit physical descriptions of each of the characters into my writing. Please feel free to ask me any questions if anything is unclear.

I also must give credit to the _Charmed_ _Wiki_ site for supplying me with endless amounts of information to create this story. I hope you enjoy it, please leave reviews so I can create the best work I can!

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 **Background and Introduction to Characters**

Magic School has developed greatly since nearly shutting down almost twenty years ago. Leo Wyatt is the Headmaster of Magic School, though he is still only a mortal. Over a hundred magical students now attend the school, ranging from babies and toddlers in the nursery to eighteen-year-olds ready to graduate. Some of the young witches split their time between regular human high school and Magic School, though many of the more magically-inclined witches, particularly the children of the Charmed Ones, simply focus on their Wiccan studies and integrate home-schooling into their education. Besides witches, a number of other young magical creatures attend Magic School, such as elves, leprechauns, nymphs, and fairies. Beings such as Whitelighters and Cupids use the school's resources for studying and training. The school has numerous magical uses besides education, making it a well-respected and very important place in the realm of good magic.

As for the Halliwell family, The Charmed Ones have mainly retired from their duties as demon-fighting witches, though Paige continues to act as a Whitelighter as well as a part-time teacher at Magic School, mostly teaching classes on advanced potion-brewing and other information passed down from the Charmed Ones to the next generation of magic. Wyatt also teaches at Magic School, having developed strong bonds with many of the students. He dedicates much of his time to guiding students toward mastery over their powers and understanding of everything magical. Chris, ever the magical history buff, teaches classes on history, literature, folklore, and other important topics in the magical community. He and his brother serve as the protectors of the school; whenever a student's spell or potion goes awry – as they often do – or there is a danger present, the brothers take care of it. The rest of the Charmed children are younger and are students at Magic School, save for Henry, Jr., the only non-witch.

 _Piper's Children_

 **Wyatt Halliwell, 21 – Orbing, Telekinetic Orbing, Orb Shield, Projection, Telekinesis, Energy Balls, Healing, Excalibur; basic Whitelighter powers  
** Wyatt is the charismatic, charming, powerful witch he's been since the time of the Charmed Ones. There is a certain light in his eyes that is extremely reassuring to everyone he meets. His friendliness is never-ending, second only to his protectiveness of his family. Probably the most powerful witch in the world, he is adept at fighting demons with a huge array of powers. Though he graduated from Magic School years ago, Wyatt is very involved in the life of the school, acting as a teacher, mentor, adviser, and a partner to his father, the Headmaster. The student body and even some of the faculty look up to Wyatt greatly, though sometimes he forgets this. To him, he's just another guy. Of course, he never forgets his duties, and he carries them out with full responsibility. He is very protective of his family, and oftentimes will not allow his siblings and cousins to assist in dealing with any kinds of threats. While the Charmed Ones will still step up to take on anything requiring the Power of Three, Wyatt is still determined to act as the primary protector of his family, especially his mother and siblings. He and Chris are remarkably close, sharing just about everything with each other.

 **Chris Halliwell, 19 – Orbing, Telekinetic Orbing, Telekinesis; basic Whitelighter powers  
** An asset to the Magic School community, Chris takes part in much of the historical and literary magical teachings. He is fascinated by the history of magic, and teaches several classes on the subject. Only having graduated from the school a year or so ago, Chris tries not to spend too much time within the great protected walls. He is enrolled in a few night classes at a local university, where he also studies his passion: _history._ Chris knows that Magic School is in great hands with his father and brother, and is confident that the young generation of magic is just fine without him. While he will always stay true to his roots, he, like his mother, has a desire to connect with the mortal world and maintain a somewhat normal life. Chris is just as stubborn, protective, and "neurotic" as he was when his alternate-timeline-self acted as the Charmed Ones' Whitelighter for a year.

 **Melinda Halliwell, 17 – Orbing, Telekinetic Orbing; basic Whitelighter powers  
** Melinda largely takes after her mother in that she does not tend to immerse herself in magic as much as her brothers or her cousins. She is rather limited in the powers department, although she doesn't mind this. She shows a lot of dedication towards helping people in ways other than vanquishing demons – a true Whitelighter at heart. Melinda longs to get her first charge, but she knows she will have to wait a few more years before the Elders give her anyone to protect. She is generous, caring, and very supportive of her family and friends, all for whom she would give anything to protect. She has learned and practices extensive potion-making skills, having been taught by the best (her mother that is).

 _Paige's Children_

 **Tamora Mitchell, 16 – Molecular Acceleration, Molecular Combustion, Orbing; basic Whitelighter powers  
** Tamora's fiery personality matches the characteristics of her powers. She and her twin sister Kat split their aunt Piper's powers of molecular manipulation; being a few hours older, Tamora received the more offensive side. As a baby, her uncontrolled magic manifested in the less controlled ability to only _accelerate_ molecules, a power capable of starting fires and heating objects. Her time at Magic School has allowed her to gain more control over her magic, however, and she can now utilize Piper's power of combustion, making her a fierce combatant against demons. Tamora loves to fight, possessing the same ambition and love for magic that her mother held in her demon-fighting years. Though nearly inseparable from her sister, she and Kat are often at odds when it comes to demons and magic.

 **Kat Mitchell, 16 – Molecular Deceleration, Molecular Immobilization, Molecular Inhibition, Orbing; basic Whitelighter powers  
** The more practical and level-headed twin, Kat is often referred to as a goody-two-shoes by her peers. She often buries herself in her studies, and can easily be found in the Magic School library reading a book about an ancient myth or the complex workings of alternate dimensions. She's also spent countless hours practicing and honing her powers, which originally allowed her to only _decelerate_ molecules, not "freeze" them. She has advanced her powers to the point that she can actually slow down molecules so as to cause them to lose enough kinetic energy that they crystallize, encapsulating the object/being in ice. Kat is also more in touch with her Whitelighter side, embracing the pacifist nature much more than her sister ever will.

 **Henry Mitchell, Jr. 15 – No powers  
** As the only mortal of the Charmed Ones' children, Henry does not attend Magic School as a regular student, instead receiving home-schooling and spending most of his free time around Magic School with his sisters and cousins. He was adopted by Paige and Henry, Sr. when his birth mother died and Paige orbed him out of the heavily pregnant woman's womb. Henry is very intelligent and has become extremely well-learned in magical teachings, just like his cousin Chris, and often tutors the other magical students. He has no issues with the fact that he is powerless compared to the rest of his family – he and his adopted father Henry share a special bond because of this. Leo has high hopes for Henry, hoping to someday name him the new headmaster. He is an excellent study and teacher, and loves everything about the magical community.

 _Phoebe's Children_

 **Prue/PJ Halliwell, 16 – Beaming, Levitation, Empathy  
** Prudence Johnna, known as PJ or Prue to her family and friends, is the oldest of Phoebe and Coop's daughters, all of whom are Cupid-Witch hybrids. Similar to their Whitelighter-Witch cousins, Phoebe's daughters inherit powers from both parents. They are capable of using Cupid powers such as Beaming (Cupids' form of teleportation) without the use of a Cupid ring. Prue also inherited two of her mother's powers, and she is a skilled Empath. She is very in tune with people's feelings, with and without her empathic gift, and is typically very understanding. She is headstrong and defiant, a firm believer in fairness and justice. The other Charmed children often find her sticking up for them and communicating their feelings fluently. Prue has spent much of her life extensively learning martial arts from her mother; combined with her powers, these skills make her a formidable opponent. She has no problem kicking demon ass when she needs to, and even enjoys it. She and her cousins Wyatt, Chris, and Tamora can often be found teaming up.

 **Parker Halliwell, 14 – Beaming, Premonition, Telekinetic Beaming  
** Parker takes after her mother's intuitiveness, having developed the power of premonition at a young age. She is very soft-spoken and reserved most of the time, though she takes great pride in her psychic abilities. She has also developed the ability to Beam objects by calling their names, much like her cousins and aunt Paige can Orb objects. Parker is not inclined towards demon fighting at all, and aspires to one day work with children. She spends a lot of time in Magic School's nursery, helping Mrs. Winterbourne and playing with the young children.

 **Peyton Halliwell, 10 – Beaming  
** As the youngest child of the Charmed Ones, Peyton is the least magically advanced. She has yet to develop an active power, though she hasn't lost hope that one will manifest soon. Her mother is her hero, and she wishes she could have premonitions or be an empath like her sisters. Peyton can often be a pain towards her older sisters and cousins, but she is undoubtedly the loved baby of the family, and typically gets everything she wants. That's not to say she is spoiled, as she can be a very giving and kind soul.


	2. Chapter 1: It's a Bird?

Here's the first chapter! If you didn't read the introduction page, I recommend that you do, as it explains a lot about some of the characters you're about to meet. In fact, you may want to refer back to the intro as each character is introduced if you're not too familiar with them already.

Oh, and thanks to my first reviewer, your words really made me smile!

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"Are you _sure_ you didn't conjure the bird?"

"Yes! I _told_ you already, I wasn't even thinking about birds! Besides, I was in the next room over, and I've never been able to conjure anything outside of my line of sight," defended Jude, the only conjurer in Magic School. He sat across from the skeptical Melinda Halliwell at a table in the main room of the institute. Earlier in the day, a pigeon had appeared in one of the rooms in the North Dorm, much to a few boys' dismay.

"Okay, but where else could it have come from? The windows are protected by magic; nothing can get in or out. Otherwise we'd have levitation students flying out over the bay all the time!" Melinda had spent most of her afternoon talking to half of the boys in Magic School, and she still couldn't figure out where the damn bird came from.

"Look," sighed Melinda, her hands gently massaging her temples. "I _know_ Bradley said that the window was open, and that he didn't actually see the pigeon until it landed on his homework. But it's just not possible that a stupid _pigeon_ could break through the most powerful magical barriers ever created!"

"Well, have you tried testing these all-powerful barriers of yours?" her cousin Prue asked from the other side of the vast room, hovering four feet in the air in search of a specific book from the tall cases lining the walls.

"No, Prue," Melinda retorted with a glare in her direction. "Do you _want_ me to get fried?"

Having given up on her search, Prue dropped herself down to the marble floor and started toward her cousin. "If it would help figure out your little mystery, sure I do. We could always have Wyatt heal you."

Jude, completely uncomfortable with his interrogation, slowly rose out of his seat, prepared to go back to his room to hide. Melinda, of course, snapped her head back around to him, scolding with a tone remarkably like her mother's. "Where do you think you're going? I'm not finished with you yet!"

"I'm telling you, Mel, I _didn't do it!_ Why won't you believe me?" he cried, out of ways to defend himself. He turned to Prue in search of some help handling Melinda and her touchiness, only to find the dark-haired Cupid-Witch squinting at him.

"He's telling the truth," Prue stated, matter-of-factly. One benefit of her power of empathy was that she could almost always tell when someone was lying. Luckily for her, Jude was incredibly easy to read. He was simply too jumpy and awkward to tell a solid lie.

"Fine," Melinda scoffed, rising from the large wooden table. "I guess I'll go figure out what happened on my own then. But I _know_ ," she said pointedly at Jude, "that a student's magic is behind this. I just need to figure out whose it was." And with that, she strutted out of the room and down the endless hallway out of sight.

"Sorry about her," consoled Prue. "She's probably just trying to play hero since her brothers do so much around here. She'll get over it." Jude slumped back into his chair, overwhelmed. Dealing with people, especially sharp-tongued pretty girls, was not his forte. At least the blame was finally off of him, though.

"Since we're on the subject," Prue pondered, absentmindedly pushing in Melinda's chair, "how is your power coming along? I know you've been having some trouble with it." As one of the Charmed children, Prue had a natural role of guidance among the students of Magic School. Jude had been blessed with a rare power, one that no one else in the school possessed, and he had a lot of difficulty mastering it. It was no wonder Melinda blamed him for the mysterious appearing pigeon, as he could hardly try to conjure an apple without coming up with a lemon instead. At age seventeen, he was expected to have more of a grasp on his power, but magic had never been his strength. His lack of confidence in his abilities only made things harder for him.

Jude sighed, resting his face in his hands. "Not great. Mr. Halliwell—"

" _Wyatt,_ " Prue corrected. Wyatt hated to be called that.

"Sorry, Wyatt—said that I have good control over concentrating and timing, but I guess I'm just not good at getting the image I'm thinking of to come out the way I want it. It's stressful. He's like, this awesomely powerful witch with about seventeen powers and I can't even conjure a nice red apple consistently."

Prue pursed her lips, sensing the blond-haired boy's frustration. "Well, everyone gets a handle on their powers at different rates. I can't imagine your power is even the slightest bit easy. Your powers are like calculus, while mine are basic algebra." Jude laughed, his cheeks turning a soft shade of pink. "Besides," Prue said cheerfully, "no one here is judging you. Especially not Wyatt. You're one of his favorite students."

"Really?" Jude asked in disbelief.

"Absolutely. Of course, he adores all of his students, but he really admires your self-discipline and determination. They're really important qualities in a witch."

Jude's cheeks had gone even redder. Praise was the last thing he expected from people. "He told you all that?"

"He didn't have to," the empath said with a smirk, and returned to her place by the bookcase.

As she magically lifted herself back up to the top shelf of old books, Prue began to wonder how the bird did manage to get into the school. The enormous institute was cloaked, hidden, shielded, and heavily imbued with powerful white magic in its spot over the famous Golden Gate Bridge, hidden from the naked eye. Nothing could get in or out of the buildings without magic – portals, teleporting, spells, you name it. It had been that way for thousands of years. The thousands of pigeons and seagulls that flew over the bay always flew right through the school, not even knowing it was there. Did that finally change?

 _It's probably nothing,_ Prue told herself. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and focused on her books.


	3. Chapter 2: A Sight for More Eyes

Time for Chapter 2! I'm going to try to go at a pace of at least one chapter per day, but it all depends on how busy I get. I'm still not quite sure just how long this story is going to be, but it will definitely not be the only one I post here. Hope you enjoy it!

P.S. How does this chapter length work out for you readers? Too short? Too long? Please let me know! Thanks 3 

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The sun was shining brightly through the grand windows of Magic School's main library as it slowly descended over the western horizon; the brilliant Golden Gate Bridge rose powerfully out of the bay below, its color magnified by the setting sun. Inside the spacious library were twenty or so students, as per usual, going about with their afternoon studies, homework, and socializing (though Mr. Mullen typically kept the social interactions to a minimum within this space). It was a Thursday in early March, and the students were a bit restless as they awaited the weekend's arrival. Tomorrow afternoon, two potion-brewing classes were to go on a weekend camping trip to identify as many magical herbs and plants as possible, and follow up with a potion of their choice concocted from their findings. The rest of the students were expecting to have an easy weekend with light homework due to this, so the atmosphere stayed carefree in anticipation of this. Sitting around a large oak table were Melinda, Kat and Tamora Mitchell, and Prue and Parker Halliwell, talking over various books of wild herbs.

"I'm willing to bet they're gonna take us somewhere with really exotic plants to try and catch us off guard. You know, give us advanced students a _real_ test," proclaimed Tamora, her reddish brown hair shining in the glow of the sunset. Her twin sister sat beside her, leafing through a book of tropical herbs that had been littered with hot pink Post-it notes listing magical terms and uses. Kat rolled her eyes at Tam, knowing the other girl wouldn't know a thing about 90% of exotic plants.

"Well then, you better hope you have either me or Kat in your group," Melinda teased. Kat snickered and exchanged a pleased glance with her cousin. It was no secret that Tam wasn't the best student, and others constantly had to save her from failing projects.

"We'll see who's laughing next time I save your butts from a demon," Tamora countered with a smirk. If she couldn't excel in school, she definitely could kick ass.

As the twins began to bicker, Prue sensed a sudden feeling of worry in the room. She looked up to see two of her cousins, Henry and Wyatt, just entering through the large doorway from the hall. Wyatt's eyebrows were creased in an uncharacteristic look of concern as he followed Henry towards a bookcase on the southern wall of the library. Prue stood and headed towards the two boys.

"It should be somewhere right here," Henry murmured, craning his neck to look up at the tall shelves. Henry knew this library like the back of his hand, so Prue figured Wyatt had asked him to find something for him. "Let's see…Right there! The dark blue one," Henry said with a content smile. "Could you give me a hand?" he asked, turning to Wyatt, who towered almost a foot over him.

"Book," Wyatt called, and the heavy volume disappeared in a swirl of blue orbs and materialized in his hand. "Oh hey Prue," he greeted his cousin offhandedly, his focus elsewhere.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"Not particularly," said Wyatt, placing the book on a nearby table. The cover read _Cloaking and Concealing Magic_ in large gold letters. Decorating the spine was an intricate pattern of swirls and golden vines – the book was clearly old and valuable.

"Wyatt… _saw_ something," Henry told Prue uneasily. "Something he shouldn't have seen." Prue raised her eyebrow at the two. Even an empath couldn't read what was on their minds.

"I saw Magic School. From the _bridge_ ," Wyatt explained as he opened the large tome in front of him. His tone was far more serious than Prue was used to hearing it, and she could tell that he was distraught over this.

"You mean, like, it's not hidden anymore? Can people still see it?" Prue began to panic at the thought of thousands of mortals seeing a giant floating castle-like building in the sky. There was no way they could cover up something like _that._

"Well, no," the Whitelighter-Witch sighed. "It was more like…a glimpse. Like I was driving along the bridge and I noticed this kind of glint of light up in the sky. And when I looked up, I swear I saw the top of one of the towers."

Henry frowned and looked at Prue. "That's why he asked me if the library had anything on cloaking. We figured if the magic was starting to fade, we might be able to figure out why, and maybe fix it. The last thing we need is someone seeing this place or trying to get in."

"Oh my God," Prue murmured to herself. "The bird." She had all at once remembered the event that occurred several days earlier, when a bird somehow appeared in the boys' dorm. She had shrugged it off, leaving Melinda to fret over it, but now it gave her a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Bird?" Henry echoed, his eyebrow raised.

Prue turned to him, her own worry growing. "The other day, I think Monday, a bird got into one of the rooms in the North Dorm. Melinda thought that Jude conjured it, but he _didn't._ She couldn't figure out where it came from, but the boys in that room said the window was open when it appeared. Wyatt, did you hear about this?"

Her older cousin looked up from a chapter about permanent cloaking spells, pushing his dirty blond hair out of his eyes. "Huh? Oh, the pigeon, right? Yeah, someone mentioned it to me. Melinda said she was taking care of it, and I guess I just forgot about it. Why are we talking about this?" Wyatt had tuned out most of the conversation and had no clue how a pigeon was relevant to his experience at the bridge.

"Be _cause_ ," Prue maintained, "it's possible that it came in through an open window. That's supposed to be _impossible._ The magical shields not only cloak the school, but they also keep anything from getting in or out on the physical plane."

Wyatt's face dropped, turning pale as he understood what Prue was telling him. "This is _bad,_ " he uttered. "I should go get Dad. Maybe he'll know what to do about this."

"Wait," Henry said. "We don't even know what _this_ is. How do we know things like this haven't happened before? Maybe we're freaking out over nothing."

"All the more reason to ask someone who knows about these things," Wyatt concluded, and he orbed away to go and find the Headmaster. Just as the blue orbs dissipated, Melinda approached the table, followed by Parker and the twins.

"Is everything okay? You guys seemed worried about something," Melinda inquired.

"We're not sure," Prue said. "Did you ever figure out what was up with that pigeon that got in?"

Melinda shook her head, a small frown cast upon her lips. "No. Bradley and his roommate couldn't explain it, and I just kept hitting dead ends. I can't explain it."

Prue and Henry exchanged worried glances. Prue knew the other was waiting for her to speak up, so she went ahead. "Well, we have some bad news. Apparently Wyatt caught a glimpse of Magic School when he was driving across the 'Gate Bridge. He's worried that the magic cloaking it is starting to wear off. And to be honest, I'm starting to think the same thing."

"But…is that possible?" asked Parker in a small voice. "Didn't the Elders cloak this place? I've never heard of their magic faltering like that."

"Who knows," offered Tam. "This place _has_ been around for a ridiculously long time. I'm surprised it's lasted this long." Kat shot her sister a sharp look, but was cut off by the appearance of two figures in a blur of orbs. As the lights faded, there stood Wyatt and Headmaster Leo. The former Elder looked troubled, and addressed the five cousins solemnly.

"We have a problem."


	4. Chapter 3: Time's a Wastin'

Hi guys! I like this pace of a chapter each day; I had this chapter completed yesterday and it took a lot to resist posting it lol. Things are a little bit slow right now, but I promise the action will be here soon. I just really want to make this story about more than just the magic and fighting. These characters are really interesting and I hope you love them.

I kept this chapter shorter than I originally intended, simply because it's more of an informational one and I felt it start to become boring. Please let me know what you think :)

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Deep inside the broad, endless hallway of Magic School, in a large, dimly lit conference room, thirteen people gathered around a table in official business. The great mahogany table stood directly in the center of the room, over an intricate pentagram design in the floor. The deep gold walls of the room stretched high beyond visibility, ending in darkness, ceiling unseen. Seated around the table were the nine Halliwell children (though some were definitely no longer children), along with two Elders and Ms. Donovan, a school administrator. Presiding over the impromptu meeting was Headmaster Leo Wyatt, dressed in a long black cloak befitting of a Headmaster. He stood at the head of the table, addressing his company about an issue he had only been aware of for a short time. Though he had been a mortal for nearly two decades now, Leo was extremely knowledgeable in all things magic, and performed his role flawlessly. After all, he had been a Whitelighter for sixty years, as well as an Elder and Avatar. The Elders sitting before him – two that he had come to know very well, Odin and Sandra – were at the moment very stern and attentive, as the issue at hand relied heavily on them. In fact, they did not care for the presence of students in the conference, but they went along with their former colleague's wishes out of respect. He had never failed Magic School before.

"As we've told Mr. Wyatt here, we Elders have recently detected an unusual shift in magic in the San Francisco area," Odin calmly explained to the group. "It is difficult to tell what exactly has caused this, or even to pinpoint what the shift _is_ , but we do know that it is happening in a strangely rapid manner."

"Not only that," continued Sandra, the other Elder, "but it has also become apparent that the shift is in some sense negative. Typically we sense surges in power when something is occurring in the magical world, but this time it's more like magic is somehow disappearing."

"Meaning Magic School is…losing its magic?" Ms. Donovan offered cautiously. Her heavily ringed hand tugged absentmindedly at her short, graying hair.

"It's hard to say," replied Odin, addressing everyone. "It's unusual for magic such as ours to simply go away without an outside force doing something to _remove it._ However, the way the Elders thousands of years ago established the protective magic prevents anyone, even Elders, from removing it. They wanted this safe haven to exist eternally, so that it would always be available for future generations of good magic. Of course, it isn't difficult to believe that such ancient magic can begin to fail after so long, but it's the way the wards are slipping that concerns us the most."

Leo took a step closer to the table, looking over his children and their cousins. "If the magic continues to deteriorate at this rate," he explained, "it may be too difficult to fix. There are many layers of very powerful magic cloaking the school, and replicating the old Elders' magic would be near impossible at such short notice."

"But," asserted Sandra, "we cannot diagnose this problem and move on to fixing it until we determine whether it is by natural causes or external forces. That's where we need the help of you nine."

" _Us?_ " questioned Tamora, a look of incredulity spread across her face. "What can we possibly do that the Elders can't?"

"Well, Tamora," Leo blurted, sensing the female Elder's annoyance with her response. "The Elders suspect that if a demonic or otherwise harmful force _is_ behind this, then they are making sure to cloak their actions from them, and avoid being detected. That being said, we doubt that these perpetrators would bother hiding themselves from witches, especially ones as young as yourselves. We think that if there is anything to find, you can find it." The nine Halliwells each looked at one another in consideration, surprised by the Elders' willingness to put such a large task in their hands. To them, the Elders were hardly more than the detached "Powers That Be" looming above them and judging their use of magic. This interaction was hardly like them. After a few seconds of silence, Wyatt finally spoke up.

"I think I understand your point, but where would we even begin? Assuming that something demonic is responsible, there are so many possibilities." A few of his relatives nodded in agreement, but they all anticipated the Elders' response.

Odin smiled very gently and looked over the nine personifications of good. "You've done it before. You are all incredibly gifted, don't sell yourselves short. Every force of evil you've defeated, every innocent one of you has saved, is a testament to this family's capability of instilling goodness in this world. We have confidence in your powers, and," his eyes passed over Henry, "in your intelligence." This brought a proud smile to Leo's face, who was above all a father and uncle.

Chris, having been unusually silent for the duration of the meeting, posed a question. "What if the magic is after all failing from natural causes? Then what do we do? We'll have to find a way to put a stop to it before the whole school ends up exposed to the mortal world, or worse. We might end up wasting too much time looking for a source that doesn't even exist." Several murmurs arose around the table as people considered this point. Chris was rather pessimistic at times, but his points were often realistic enough to cause doubt.

"In that case, I think we should split up," Henry, Jr. proposed. Every head at the table turned to him, expecting something clever as usual. With his neatly-combed brown hair, metal framed glasses, and white shirt, he looked remarkably like a professor. "After all," he continued, not fazed under the pressure, "I won't be able to do much going after demons. And I'm sure Mel and Peyton would prefer to help me scour the library for more information that could help. That way we have one team searching the Underworld and other sources for a potential culprit, while the others try to find a way to repair the damage if it can't be stopped."

"That's excellent, Henry," Leo commended with a grin. His efforts to convince the Elders to entrust the children with this task had definitely been worth it.

After clearing up everyone's capabilities and jobs, the young generation of witches (and mortal) filed out of the conference room to gather their belongings from the library. Wyatt, Tamora, Kat, and Prue would head down to the Underworld as soon as possible to try and find information about demons targeting Magic School. Chris, Melinda, Henry, Parker, and Peyton would check every possible resource, inside and outside of the school, for ways to magically fix the barriers and stop their crumbling. The pairs of Elders and administrators followed behind them, ensuring each of them safely orbed or beamed out.

"I hope they know what they're doing," Odin said warningly to Leo as the last of them disappeared.

Leo stood staring resolutely out of the huge window and over the bay, to the bridge he spent many hours on meditating when he was an Elder himself. "I have complete faith in them. They're everything the Charmed Ones were and more."


	5. Chapter 4: Just Keep Searching

Hey all, Happy New Year! I apologize for taking so long to update this, the holiday really kept me busy. Plus, this chapter took an annoying long time to write. There's a little bit of action at the beginning, but trust me, there will be a lot more in the coming chapters. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy!

xoxo~Joel

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" _Get down_!" Tamora shouted to her cousins before blowing up a demon in front of them.

"Are you _sure_ you scryed right?" seethed Prue, dodging a fire ball. They were in a smaller open cavern of the Underworld, perhaps some kind of nest, as demons kept appearing by the dozens. The four witches Prue, Tamora, Kat, and Wyatt stood in a sort of circle, with their backs to each other, fending off the onrush of demons.

"I scryed for high levels of demonic activity and it led us here!" defended Kat, who was significantly out of her league with these demons. "Watch out!" she yelled, freezing a fire ball inches away from her sister's back.

"Thanks," called Tam before blasting the ball of fire back in the direction of the demon that fired it. Wherever in the Underworld they were, clearly there was no kind of strategic planning to take down Magic School – just a bunch of fiery demons that were surprisingly powerful.

"Maybe we should get out of here," Wyatt suggested as another demon went up in flames and was vanquished. As much as they enjoyed ridding the world of as many demons as possible, there was no point wasting their time and risking their lives if it wasn't for any good outcome. Wyatt's cousins all nodded in assent, and with a wave of his arm he orbed the four of them back to the Upper Regions.

Seconds later, the group appeared in the Halliwell Manor attic, a few feet away from the famous Halliwell Book of Shadows. Since the Charmed Ones' retirement, the second generation had full access to the old tome, which had grown even larger in the past twenty years.

"Sorry," Kat immediately apologized. "I guess I didn't think about how specific my scrying should have been. I nearly got us killed."

Wyatt placed a comforting hand on Kat's shoulder. "It's fine Kat, _we're_ fine. Now we know we just need to refine our search a little bit. We need a lead."

"And where are we gonna get a lead?" asked Tam, plopping herself down onto an old couch in the corner. "It's not like any demons are going to talk."

"I know," sighed Wyatt, flipping through the Book for the thousandth time in his life. "We should have stuck around Magic School with the others for a little while. I'm thinking we'll need to find some specifics. Maybe some kind of energy-sucking demon, or a past event that we can link this to. As for the Book of Shadows, I don't think this family has ever run into a threat like this."

"Let's go then!" agreed Prue, her green eyes eager. "Unless you want to go back to a crumbling Magic School." And with that, she disappeared in a glow of pink light.

"Well," said Tam, "you've got to admire her determination."

* * *

Meanwhile, over in the Magic School library, things were going equally as slowly. It was Friday morning, and Leo had allowed the Charmed kids to miss their classes (and arranged substitutes for Wyatt and Chris) so that they could focus on their imperative task. Chris, Melinda, Henry, Parker, and Peyton were scattered intermittently around the spacious library, each at a table covered in various books, maps, sun charts, and other materials. They had spent all morning scanning everything they could for information on magical shields, cloaks, force fields, wards – everything. Much of what they came up with was types of protective magic and their uses, yet somehow Magic School seemed to have nothing on its own magical barriers.

"This book has a chapter on magically concealing buildings," announced Melinda. "But it seems more like glamouring; it talks about making old sacred buildings look ordinary so that they aren't disturbed." With a sigh, she closed the book and put it in her growing pile of 'these-may-or-may-not-help-us-but-at-least-they-have-something' books.

"This is so _pointless_ ," complained Chris, dropping his head onto a large stack of books. "I still don't understand why the Elders couldn't handle this on their own. If the old Elders could do it, why can't they?"

Melinda sighed and looked at her brother. "Come on, Chris. Dad entrusted us with this. I get the feelings that it was more his idea to have us work on this. Besides, they already told us that the kind of magic those Elders used to protect this place requires a _lot_ of power. I don't think they could fix this if they tried."

"And we can?" detested Parker, wiping the dust from a dozen books onto her jeans.

"Look, guys," Melinda pleaded, "I know this is really disheartening and we all feel really defeated, but—"

"Oh nice, now you're sounding just like Prue," Parker said, rolling her eyes. Her biggest pet peeve with her older sister was her tendency to constantly announce everyone's emotions just because she always knew what people were feeling.

"Did someone call me?" Everyone's heads whipped around to see Prue standing in the doorway to the library, a smirk on her face.

"Hey, Prue," greeted Henry, the only one in the room who was still completely calm.

"Wow, talk about negative energy," Prue disdained, looking around the room.

" _You see?_ " shouted Parker, throwing her hands up in the air.

"We're just having a little trouble finding anything very helpful," Henry explained, rising from his chair. "Where are the others? How did it go for you guys?"

"Oh, you know, your sister landed us right in a nest of crazy demons and we learned absolutely nothing," Prue beamed in a sarcasm-soaked tone. "But what else is new?"

Meanwhile, Prue's three companions orbed in behind her, and gawked at the huge clutter surrounding them.

"You guys did all this in just a few hours?" said Tamora, cautiously picking up a book titled _How Force Fields Work_. The library looked like it had been stricken by three earthquakes and a hurricane.

"Please tell me you've found _some_ kind of lead for us to work with," said Wyatt.

"Unfortunately, we haven't found much," Henry sighed. "Although I did find something about a demon that has the ability to negate protective forces. Maybe you guys can find him if he's still around somewhere."

"Well, it's something. Let me see." Wyatt headed towards Henry, who was digging through the various books around him.

"Here it is," Henry said, opening up to a bookmarked page in a smaller leather-bound book. "The demon Pengahl targets various magical beings, consuming them and using their magical energy as food. She kills her victims by hiding in walls or floors and slowly absorbing their magic until they are weakened enough for her to make her move. Pengahl is capable of absorbing all kinds of magic, including force fields and magically conjured objects."

"That sounds pretty convincing to me," agreed Wyatt. "She could be currently feeding on the magic around the school in hopes of getting in and feasting on all the magical creatures inside the school. Is there anything else on her?"

"Nope," said Henry, closing the book and handing it to his tall blond cousin.

"Okay then, we can try to track her down, see if she's even alive."

"Hi Uncle Leo!" Wyatt heard Kat say. He looked up to see his father entering the library.

"Hey kids," Leo greeted them. Somehow Wyatt could tell that he was currently in Headmaster mode, not cool uncle mode. In fact, his father looked serious, and he held himself with an air of authority and responsibility that Wyatt had rarely seen in him.

"Is everything okay, Dad?" asked Chris, getting up from the table and heading towards the center of the room. Clearly he had sensed something in his father as well.

"Not exactly," the former Elder said with a frown. "I'm afraid most of you aren't going to like this, but I just spoke with Mrs. Felicity, and it's been decided that the weekend camping trip must be cancelled – or, at least postponed for the time being."

"What?" cried Kat. "I've been waiting for this trip like, all month! You can't cancel it now!"

Leo sighed and addressed his niece. "I'm afraid we have no choice, Kat. It's too dangerous to be letting kids out of Magic School without full protection at this point. I was just notified that a student has been missing since last night."

"Missing?" Chris repeated. "Who?"

"Ginger," Leo replied, his expression stern. "Her roommate said she heard her get up last night, but when she woke up in the morning, Ginger wasn't in her bed."

"There's no way she ran way," Tamora contemplated out loud. "That's just not like her."

"Besides that, I checked the portal and it hasn't been used since yesterday afternoon. And Ginger doesn't have any teleportation powers. She could have used a spell or something, but like you said Tam, that's not something she would do. Regardless, we're doing our best to locate her in hopes that this has nothing to do with the school's barriers being damaged." Leo then noticed for the first time the library's state of disarray, and frowned. "I see you've all been hard at work in here."

"Unfortunately, we haven't had as much success as you'd think," Wyatt lamented. "But Henry did just give me a good demonic lead to follow. I'm going to head down to the Underworld after I scry for the demon. Ever heard of Pengahl?"

"Not that I can remember," Leo responded. "Just be careful, and come back as soon as you find anything. I don't think you should face anything alone until we really know what we're up against."

"Got it," Wyatt nodded, and orbed back to the manor.

"Shouldn't someone go with him?" asked Prue, ready to volunteer.

"No," the Headmaster declined. "Wyatt can handle it. Besides, we need as many people as possible looking for more information here. There must be something to help us in these books." Leo sat at the nearest table and opened a book, ready to help out and get this thing done.


	6. Chapter 5: Enter Demon

Okay, so it's been like two weeks. I'm sorry about that. School hit me like a truck this semester. But a really awesome reviewer kind of prompted me to get back on here and write a short chapter, so here you go! Hope you enjoy :)

* * *

"Please, just let me go. I swear I won't tell anyone about you!"

A small, soft-spoken teenage girl sat huddled in a wrought-iron cage, bound to a bar with heavy chains. Her short brown hair was matted with dried blood that had oozed from a small gash she didn't remember getting, and she had woken up several hours before, confused and aching all over. Standing outside her small prison was a tall female demon with long black hair that seemed to move on its own, as if it were flowing in a nonexistent breeze. Her skin was pale and smooth, except for her rough hands, withered from centuries of mixing potions and surviving in the Underworld. In the dim firelight of the lair, the demon almost looked beautiful, but the young captive witch knew just how hideous her face was. Though she had only glimpsed her visage, she had seen the demon's jagged black teeth and blood red eyes, set contrastingly against her pale skin.

"Shut up, _witch,_ " the demon hissed as she gathered items from the stone shelves around her lair. The cave was filled with cauldrons, demonic books, potion ingredients, and more – her array of magical tools almost resembled the collection of a witch, Ginger noticed. Just like the many rooms of Magic School, this cave had likely been home to many magical workings. Currently, the demon was pouring the blackish contents of a vial into a bowl, releasing a foul stench that made Ginger gag.

Ignoring the gagging sounds, the demon peered into the bowl, her flowing hair draping around it in a curtain of black. As she muttered a few words in some ancient language, the black liquid began to ripple and swirl, conjuring an image on the surface. Ginger, her hand tightly pinching her nose shut, watched suspiciously as she heard voices rise from the bowl.

After a few seconds, the witch was able to make out the words. "…lead to follow," said the voice in the bile. "I'm going to head down to the Underworld after I scry for the demon. Ever heard of Pengahl?" Immediately Ginger recognized the voice as her teacher's, Wyatt Halliwell himself.

"Dammit!" shrieked the demon Pengahl, pushing a collection of jars off her workspace in a fury. "Those damn witches are _already_ on my trail!" She bared her angry-looking teeth as she continued to listen in on the people in Magic School.

"They'll find you," Ginger muttered. "Whatever it is you're doing, they'll figure it out. They always do." The student tugged on her chains and adjusted her position. A spark of hope had jolted inside of her at the sound of Wyatt's voice. If anyone could save her, it was him and the other children of the Charmed Ones.

" _Silence!_ " Pengahl shouted. The demon turned away from her scrying bowl and rushed toward the large opening on the opposite side of her cave. "Don't you _dare_ pull anything, witch," she hissed, stopping just outside the exit. "I'll suck the life right out of you unless you stay put."

* * *

In the attic of the manor on Prescott Street, Wyatt flipped rapidly through the Book of Shadows, hoping to find something on this strange demon he had never heard of before. As well as he knew the Book, there were still far too many entries for him to remember all of them – especially when demons had such weird names.

"Here," he whispered to himself as he finally saw the name _Pengahl_ written in dark, swirling ink. The subtext was only a short paragraph, revealing only a little more than the book back at the school did. ' _A former witch who sold her soul to gain more power. She can only feed the empty void within her by consuming magic. She may live in the walls of magical beings' homes and slowly drain the magic they use. She rarely confronts her victims, usually going unnoticed.'_

"Great, no known vanquish," Wyatt groaned. Figuring it would be easier to scry for a witch, he grabbed a scrying crystal and map and got to work, with his student Ginger on his mind. Ginger was a studious, dedicated student, and was genuinely nice to everyone around her. Wyatt knew deep inside him that she was in trouble, and he could never let anything bad happen to her.

After a few minutes of scrying, the amethyst crystal finally pulled itself down onto a target on the map. Something inside Wyatt told him that finding her was too easy, that a demon powerful and smart enough to take down Magic School would have hidden her better. But, he shrugged off the feeling and hoped that the two events were completely unrelated, and he orbed away to Ginger's location.

Meanwhile, Ginger had taken Pengahl's absence as an opportunity to try to escape. She was a very intelligent person, and extremely resourceful, so she knew she could find a way out of her predicament. The witch's only active power was Astral Projection, an ability that had never come so in handy as it was now. She had positioned herself so that her bindings were exposed, and now her astral self was trying diligently to unbind the chains. She had made little progress when a blue glow suddenly filled the room.

"Wyatt!" astral Ginger cried as the Whitelighter-Witch appeared from the orbs. "I knew you'd be able to find me! Hurry up and get me out of here before the demon gets back!"

"What demon?" questioned Wyatt, his eyes traveling all over the dark cavern.

"I don't know her name. She kind of looked like a vampire, but I've seen one of those before and she was more…demonic looking." Ginger shuddered as she recalled the black teeth and red, empty eyes. She much preferred the safety of Magic School over demonic fights, or even helping innocents. She was too soft for this.

"She?" Wyatt asked, stepping towards the cage. "So it was a female demon. It _must_ have been Pengahl! We need to get out of here, now!" He immediately tried opening the cage, only to be shocked and knocked back several feet.

"Are you okay?" Ginger panicked, and returned to her body. Her huddled form awoke and sat straight up in worry. "I had no idea she cast a spell on the cage. I woke up already inside of it." Just then, as Wyatt groaned and sat up on the ground, a demon shimmered in behind him and immediately prepared to throw a fireball at the fallen witch. "Watch out!" Ginger shrieked, causing Wyatt to automatically throw up his force field. The fireball bounced off the blue protective bubble and hit the wall in a burst of flames.

All of a sudden a black tar-like substance started oozing from the floor beneath Wyatt, and his force field began to fade away. The black liquid grew quickly, taking shape as it seemingly absorbed the shield's energy.

"What _is_ that?" Wyatt turned his head to Ginger, unable to drop his force field or move his body. His eyes widened as the slime grew upwards, taking on a rough humanoid form that continued to grow. "Oh God," Wyatt exclaimed, remembering his readings about Pengahl. The slime solidified and morphed into Pengahl, her hair dripping with black gunk. Her pale hands were outstretched towards Wyatt, glowing a dark purple.

"Thanks for the prize, sweetie," Pengahl hissed to Ginger as her teacher collapsed, unconscious, his force field completely gone. "This boy's got some real tasty magic."


	7. Chapter 6: Where's Wyatt?

Hi all! Here's a nice long dramatic chapter! This one was fun to write, and all you Chris lovers will love it (I know there are a lot of you...) Chris is a lot of fun to play with because we all already know and love him so well.

I hope you enjoy, please leave a review so I can do my best! Much love :) -Joel

* * *

Chris Halliwell's knowing green eyes had a tendency to become dark and ominous when he was angry or hurt. Now, they shone mysteriously in the light of a fire, revealing the pain behind them to the demonic Seer he spoke with.

"What makes you think I'd help _you_?" the Seer retorted. Like many Seers, she had the young face and body of a seductress, draped in elegant red garments that hardly covered her shapely body. She leaned delicately against a huge cauldron, its contents swirling and producing a mystical haze custom to magical brews.

"Because if you don't," Chris explained with a monotone voice, "you'll deal with the full force of the Halliwell family. And that's a fate _no_ demon would want to foresee."

The Seer scoffed and rolled her sharp blue eyes at the witch. "I wouldn't say _full_ force. But, you're right. I'd prefer to stay alive a little while longer." Her better judgment warned her not to mess with a family of powerful witches. "Let me guess, it's about your brother?"

"Yes. Wyatt," Chris answered through his clenched jaw. "He's been missing for three days now, and no amount of good magic has been able to find him. I _need_ to know if he's alive." The last time anyone had seen Wyatt was when he left Magic School to follow up on the information Henry found on Pengahl. In the attic of the manor, the Book of Shadows had been left open to the demon's entry and the scrying crystal was out. Besides that, there was no evidence as to where Wyatt could be. The Halliwells had spent countless hours scrying, sensing, calling for a lost witch, and even searching the Underworld as much as they could, but he was nowhere to be found. According to the Elders, they hadn't sensed his death, but Chris had little faith in them or their powers. They had failed his family more than once before.

"Well, I'll be honest," said the Seer. "Detecting good magic has never been my forte. But I'll see what I can sense." Standing up straight, she gestured her arm over the cauldron, causing the fog to settle, and a faint light emanated from the depths of the vessel. "I see you came from Magic School," the Seer observed, peering into something invisible to Chris. "Your brother was trying to protect it when he came down here…"

Chris's eyes suddenly widened. "Wait! What else can you tell me about Magic School?" With Wyatt missing, most of their attention had been focused on looking for him, and they had all but forgotten about the issue with the school. They hadn't found Ginger either, but no one else had gone missing, and things seemed more or less normal for the time being.

"I can see its magical barriers are starting to fade," the Seer answered, her eyes closed but seeing plenty. "And demons are trying to take advantage of it. That's what your brother came looking for, isn't it?"

" _What demons?_ "Chris demanded.

"I'm no snitch, honey," she sneered, brushing her blonde hair behind her shoulder. "I _am_ still a demon, I've got to stick up for my colleagues. You'll have to figure out all the details on your own."

Chris sighed and leaned against the giant cauldron, his hands on the lip. "Fine. Can you see anything else about Wyatt?"

The Seer pursed her lips and judged the witch for a moment before extending her hands back over the cauldron. This time, an image materialized on the surface of its contents, visible to both the Seer and Chris.

" _Wyatt,_ " Chris gasped. There lay his older brother, unconscious and bound to a wall, presumably somewhere in the Underworld. The man who had been his role model, the perfect picture of good magic and power, appeared so weak and defeated. "Where is he?!" he shouted, his eyes moist with angry and panicked tears.

"That, I don't know," said the Seer honestly. Her powers had their limits, and she was surprised she could even conjure up an image of the powerful witch.

Chris swore, throwing his face into his hands to hide his tears. Of course, there was no hiding anything from a demon that could see almost all. "I _will_ find him," he muttered into his hands, and he orbed away.

"You're _welcome_!" the Seer shouted sarcastically towards the dissipating orbs. She almost thought she could hear a faint ' _thank you_ ' coming from above her, but she couldn't tell for sure.

* * *

Back at Magic School, the students had been placed on lockdown until Wyatt and Ginger could be located and the students' safety could be guaranteed. Classes went on as normal, and only teachers and the Halliwell kids could come and go as necessary. Still, the school's portal was temporarily closed so that no one could leave without other means, and the faculty kept a close eye on the students.

Headmaster Leo sat in his roomy office, studying Ginger's file for any information that could help in her search. Though she wasn't a particularly powerful witch, he figured that she was intelligent enough to cloak herself if she had decided to run away. This, however, seemed unlikely, as she was no longer the only one missing, as Leo was forced to remember painfully.

As the former Elder flipped through the papers at his desk, a gentle knock sounded through the door. "Come in," Leo responded.

The door opened, and in came Mr. Hoffman, the Advanced Telekinesis professor. "Headmaster Leo," he greeted, closing the wooden door behind him. "Something's come up, and I thought you should know about it."

"What is it?" Leo asked absently, not looking up from his papers.

"Well, you closed the portal a few days ago, and so the faculty has mostly been using potions or spells to get in and out of the school, but…" Mr. Hoffman paused, unsure how to continue. "Well, you see, it appears that we're…trapped."

" _Trapped_?" Leo repeated, his full attention now on his employee.

"Th-that's right," Hoffman stuttered. "Since about noon, no one has been able to get out. I've tried several potions and spells myself, but each time it's a dud."

Leo rose from his desk chair, his developing wrinkles prominent on his worried face. "Has anyone tried orbing, or beaming? Do the students know about this?"

"No one has been notified yet," Hoffman explained. "I would suggest—"

Leo rushed past the professor before he had a chance to finish, disappearing into the hallway without waiting for Hoffman. Leo nearly ran to the large main room of the school, where we found his daughter Melinda, along with Prue, Henry, and Kat. The four students were surprised to see him in such a rush.

"Dad, what's going on? Is everything okay?" Melinda asked, putting down her book and walking towards her dad. "Mel, have you tried orbing today?" her father asked, catching his breath.

"Not since this morning when I orbed here, no," she replied, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"Well, do me a favor," Leo requested. "Try orbing home, see if you can."

Melinda exchanged a confused glance with her cousins. "Okay…" she agreed, and she disappeared in a veil of orbs. The four others stood in anticipation for just a few moments before the cloud of orbs suddenly appeared above them, rushing back to the floor. With a yelp, Melinda landed on her back on the marble floor, apparently knocked back down by something. "What the heck was that?" she groaned, sitting up with her hand rubbing the back of her head.

Her father took her hand and helped her up. "I hoped that wouldn't happen," he lamented. "For some reason, no one can get out of Magic School."

"What?" exclaimed Tamora. "What do you mean? How?!"

"I don't know," Leo replied. "I only just found this out too. But sometime today, people stopped being able to magic themselves out of here."

"Can people still get in?" asked Henry.

Leo frowned, unsure of the answer. "I'm not sure."

"Chris left a couple of hours ago. I don't know where he went," said Henry, worried for his cousin. "What if he's stuck outside the school? He'll have no idea what's going on inside."

"That might be okay," consoled Leo. "At least we know there's someone on the outside who will figure out what's going on. And he'll be able to keep looking for Wyatt." A glint of unease flashed in Leo's eyes as he mentioned his missing son. Still, he would act as the stable rock in a time of such unsureness and anxiety.

* * *

"What do you _mean_ you can't get into Magic School?!"

Chris stood in the conservatory of his home, the Halliwell manor. Sitting in front of him was his mother, her face flushed with panic. "I mean I tried orbing there, but something _blocked_ me. It was like I just bounced right off."

"Well did you try again?" Piper snapped.

"Of course, Mom. I failed every time. I don't know what's going on." Chris sighed and sat in an armchair, running his hand anxiously through his hair. "Everyone is still there. What if something is happening to them? I'm already failing at finding Wyatt, now them—"

"Chris, stop," Piper said gently. She, too, had joined in the desperate search for her son, leaving her restaurant in the hands of her manager, and had hardly slept the past three nights. "Don't you dare blame yourself for any of this. Wyatt is the most resilient and powerful source of good there is – he's going to be okay."

"Are you sure?" Chris said, his voice a hoarse whisper. Tears began to well up again behind his eyes. "I just saw a demonic Seer, and she showed me Wyatt. He's somewhere down there mom, and he's not doing well."

" _What_?" Piper exclaimed. "Chris, you could have gotten killed! You know better than to deal with demons! For all you know, everything she told you and showed you could have been a bunch of lies."

"No, Mom," Chris muttered. He sat up and wiped his eye roughly with the back of his hand. "It was definitely him. I felt it. We have to help him, we have to do _something._ " His green eyes were dark with concern and exhaustion. Piper wasn't the only one who hadn't been sleeping.

Piper sighed and stood up, taking her son's hand to bring him with him. "Come on, let's go check the Book of Shadows. There has to be something we're missing, something we can do."

"Mom, I've checked the Book at least—"

"Well then, dammit, we'll look again." When his mother's voice rose to a certain tone, Chris knew not to go against her. Besides, he had just about run out of motivation to do anything. Dropping Piper's hand, he stood and followed her to the attic.


	8. Chapter 7: Trapped

Sooo it's been like a whole year since I last posted a chapter for this story. Sorry about that. Hopefully I get some new readers. I really enjoy writing this story, and this time I'll finish it for sure. Thanks for reading!

* * *

"Are you sure this is gonna work?" asked Prue for what must have been the sixth time. She and her sisters and cousins sat gathered around a large wooden table in the large, main chamber of Magic School. It had been about an hour since the Halliwells and Leo realized that they were trapped inside of the school, with none of their magic being able to get them out. Since cell phones didn't receive service inside the school, they had no way of contacting anyone outside. They decided to keep the crisis a secret from the other students for now, who were on lockdown anyway due to the two missing witches, and were not allowed to leave Magic School.

"This is a centuries-old form of communication, Prue," explained Leo. "It was used in Magic School for centuries, but it's kind of outdated and forgotten about now. It never failed anyone before."

"Yes, but no one's ever been _trapped_ in this place either, _have they_?" Prue retorted sharply, earning her a scolding glance from Melinda. "Sorry," Prue immediately sighed. "Everyone's nerves are getting to me. Let's just try it so we can get out of here."

Leo sat leaned over a half-sheet of paper, where he had just finished writing a message and brief instructions. "Of course, I'll need one of you witches to do it for me. We need a source of fire, too."

"I got it," offered Tamora, whose powers allowed her to set objects on fire.

"Perfect," said Leo, reaching to hand his niece the paper. "Just read the spell at the bottom, visualize the manor attic, and then burn the paper. Then, if it works, the paper should reappear in the attic, where hopefully Piper will find it."

"Okay," Tam agreed hopefully, looking carefully at the paper in her hand. " _Spirits of fire, of thee I implore; deliver this message, through space shall it soar."_ And with that she shut her eyes, and her fingertips glowed, causing the message to ignite and disappear in a flash of brilliant blue flames.

"Well you definitely got it right," Leo said, grinning. "The blue flames mean the spell worked. Now, we wait for a reply. That is, if the message made it out of here. In the meantime, I need you all to keep looking through the library for something that can help us. I'm going to go talk to the other faculty about dealing with the rest of the students. I'll be in my office if you need me."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Halliwell Manor, Chris and Piper stood over the Book of Shadows, searching for anything that could lead them to Wyatt down in the underworld.

"This is useless," Chris sighed. "We've tried everything, Mom. Unless I can find out exactly what demon has Wyatt trapped down there, there's nothing we can do. I have to go back down there."

"And get yourself killed? I don't think so," replied Piper, her hand nervously playing with her graying hair.

"Would you rather we just let Wyatt _die_ down there?" argued Chris as he shut the magical book in frustration. "I wish I could just _talk_ to him. He would know what to do right now. He always does."

"Oh, sweetie," his mother murmured, placing a comforting hand on her son's shoulder. She hated seeing her son under so much distress. There was no question that Chris lived in Wyatt's shadow, and struggled with wanting to impress his family when Wyatt wasn't around to take charge. Now, with no choice but to lead the search for his brother, he felt as if the weight of the entire world were crushing him relentlessly.

Just then, a flurry of glowing white orbs typical of witches' magic appeared over the Book of Shadows, and a sheet of paper materialized and landed gently on the dark green cover. Piper and Chris exchanged a skeptical yet hopeful glance, and Chris carefully picked up the paper. "This is dad's handwriting," he exclaimed, a smile quickly appearing on his face. " _To whoever finds this message, know that everyone here at Magic School are safe, but unable to get out by any means. We've tried the portal, orbing, spells, and everything we could think of. If you haven't already tried, do not orb here, as you will likely get stuck here too. Chris has been out for a while looking for information about Wyatt – please have him send us any information he's gathered. Simply visualize Magic School, read the spell below, and burn a piece of paper with the message. Take care, —Leo."_

"See, I knew everything would be okay," said Piper. "Let's hurry and send a message back to them."

* * *

Back at Magic School, the other seven Halliwell kids had once again spread out in the library, sifting through various piles of books on magical wards, forcefields, and more. Sitting at a small table by herself, Melinda glanced up to see a flash of white light in the center of the room, from which a yellow notepad paper floated down to the dark marble floor. "Hey guys, I think we just got a fire message back," Melinda announced, rushing over to the note.

"That was fast," said Kat. "I'll go get Leo."

"It's from Chris," Melinda told them. "He says Wyatt is being held somewhere down in the Underworld, but he doesn't know where or by who. And apparently, whatever is keeping us trapped in Magic School is also keeping him _out._ He can't orb in."

"What's the news?" asked Leo, rushing in with Kat. Melinda handed him the message and watched her father's expression grow worried as he read through it. "Well, at least we know Wyatt's alive. And we should definitely be looking for a demon here."

"Wait, a demon?!" exclaimed Henry from across the room. Everyone turned to look at the young intellectual, whose ideas usually led them somewhere. "Leo, remember the day Wyatt went missing, he was going to see what he could find on a demon? One who could absorb magic or something. I can't remember the name. Do you think maybe he found the demon and is stuck down there somehow?"

Leo frowned and looked at Henry, Jr. intently. "It's definitely a good place to start. And if the demon can absorb magic, then it makes sense that Wyatt hasn't orbed himself out of there. Are you sure you don't remember the demon's name?"

"Uhh… I think it started with the letter P," Henry said, racking his brain. "I have to find the book I read about it in. It should be somewhere around here." He then looked around at the scores of large tomes and small books piled and arranged all around the library. "I guess we'd better start looking."


	9. Chapter 8: The Walls Have Eyes

hi everyone, sorry this chapter isn't terribly long but right now I'm kind of just trying to post as frequently as possible, so the content isn't very long. hopefully i'll get another chapter up tomorrow, too. also, I'd really appreciate it if you left a quick review, they make me incredibly happy and remind me to keep writing good (i hope) stuff! enjoy! (:

* * *

" _Chris,_

 _Sorry this took so long, we had to find the book with the information we needed to send back to you. We think the demon who captured Wyatt is Pengahl, this creepy vampire-like demon that consumes magical energies. If we're right, then she's also probably behind the collapse of the forcefields here. We don't know anything else about her though, so double check the BOS just in case. Please be extremely careful when pursuing her, as she probably used her powers to subdue Wyatt and possibly Ginger._

 _Good luck,  
–Henry"_

Chris looked up from the note in his hands at Piper, an identical expression of determination on both of their faces. "What do you say we track down this bitch and get my brother back?" he offered, heading straight back for the Book of Shadows.

"If we can even _find_ her," sighed his mother as she sat in a chair and put her head in her hands. "She must have cloaked her hideout somehow since she got a hold of Wyatt, or else we would have found him by now."

"Maybe not," Chris replied, slowly flipping through the pages of the Book telekinetically. "I'm thinking the reason we can't find him is because she drained his magic. After all, that's how scrying works; magic reaching out to other magic. Maybe we can find a way to get ourselves to the demon instead — here she is!" Piper rose out of her seat and joined the young witch by the Book. "She used to be a witch, apparently," said Chris, reading through the small paragraph on Pengahl. "Wait…this is bad. ' _She may live in the walls of magical beings' homes and slowly drain the magic they use.'_ Mom, that's how she's doing it. She weakened the barriers enough to get into Magic School, and must be working from _inside the walls._ "

"But that doesn't explain why no one can get in or out," Piper questioned.

"Well," thought Chris, "she _was_ formerly a witch. She must have cast a spell or something to create her own kind of forcefield around the school. That way she could consume all of its magic unhindered and become incredibly powerful. I mean, that has to be her motive for going after magic as old and powerful as this, right? If she can take in all that energy, she'd be practically unstoppable."

" _Chris…_ " Piper said, placing an urgent hand on her son's arm. "If Pengahl absorbs magic from people living _inside_ the buildings she goes into…"

"…Then everyone in Magic School is in more danger than we realized," Chris finished, his face going pale. "Oh God, we need to send them a fire message, _now._ "

* * *

Meanwhile, the team back at Magic School was in a minor frenzy over a shrill scream that had just echoed down the main hallway. Parker and Kat, who were closest to the towering archway of the library's entrance, immediately sprinted down the grand hallway towards the source of the scream. Around the corner and about a hundred yards down the stretch of doorways and ancient murals, the two girls saw Miss Callaghan, a leprechaun who taught a class on magical creatures and beings, fallen in a bubbling puddle of shiny black ooze. Miss Callaghan was struggling and screaming, the black substance sticking to her short limbs and holding her down.

" _Miss Callaghan!"_ Kat shouted, and threw her hands out in front of her, fingers spread, freezing both the leprechaun and the dark puddle. Within seconds she and Parker were standing over the frozen professor, breathing heavily from the run. Behind them, Melinda and Tamora followed, staring in bafflement at the strange sludge surrounding Miss Callaghan.

"What the _hell_ is that?" Melinda exclaimed under her breath, pushing her long brown hair behind her ears. Up close, she could see that the black substance appeared thick and tarlike, and seemed to be oozing out of the floor, from the tiny spaces between the massive tiles.

"I don't know," Parker said with a grimace, "but we've got to get her out of there." The Cupid-witch reached her hand out and grabbed Miss Callaghan by the forearm, causing herself to let out a familiar gasp that her cousins knew to be the warning sign of a premonition.

"Parker? What do you see?" questioned Tamora. Parker's eyes were clenched shut, her mouth fixed slightly open.

"Nothing good," Parker muttered, slowly opening her eyes. "This black stuff, it's…a demon."

"What?" Kat gasped, looking down in horror at the sludge.

"This hideous, female demon," continued Parker, "with jagged black teeth like a shark, and creepy red eyes. She turns into this stuff and…attacks people, I guess. I saw her take Ginger."

Just then, the four girls heard Henry's voice echoing down the hall towards them. "Guys, guys!" he shouted, running towards them with a piece of paper in his hand. He stumbled to a halt, bent over with his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. "Chris…" he panted, "wrote back. We were right about the demon. He thinks she's here—what the hell is that?" Henry's eyes had fixated on Miss Callaghan and her ominous puddle, stopping his train of thought dead in its tracks.

" _That_ ," emphasized Melinda, "would be the demon."

"But," Henry began, but he was cut off by Miss Callaghan's screams as she and the demonic sludge suddenly unfroze.

" _Oh my God,_ " exclaimed Tamora. " _Kat, freeze them!"_ she screamed, but it was too late; the blackness had quickly retreated, sinking back into the cracks between the tiles, leaving Miss Callaghan pale and half unconscious on the cold floor.

"Okay, we need to send a message back to Chris and tell him to hurry up and find a way to vanquish this chick," said Parker as she knelt down next to Miss Callaghan, brushing the leprechaun's hair out of her face.

"I'm on it," Henry answered. "Tam, come on. I'll need your power."


End file.
